The Interior Ministry statement, released Wednesday, said the shooting happened about 1 a.m. when the embassy in Cairo's Giza district was closed. It described the attack as a drive-by shooting.

The ministry said an investigation was underway.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, though Egypt faces attacks from militant groups, including an affiliate of the Islamic State group.

Wednesday's attack comes after a car bombing at the Italian Consulate in Cairo on July 11 killed one person. That attack was claimed by a group calling itself The Islamic State in Egypt. Previous claims linked to Islamic State attacks in Egypt had been signed as the group's Sinai Province.